Monday, June 3, 2013

Many local libraries have book clubs for children. Like with book clubs for adults, the members read a book and they discuss what they read. For more of a child friendly format a lot of times they will either read all the same title or they can read any of a select number of titles by a certain author. When they meet up for the program they'll talk about the books before they do related activities. Some clubs are just for children while others are meant for families (mother and daughter book clubs, for example)

As you may have caught on by now, book clubs are another great way to be aware of your child's reading comprehension progress!

Check out your local library system to see if they have a children's book club.This could be a in-library program or they have a virtual book club resource.

Create your own book club in the neighborhood. You can meet at home, at a community center or maybe even your library. There are a lot of resources online that will help you created your own club complete with guides.

Join a Online/Virtual Reading Club. There are many bloggers out there in the world that participate a group initiative like a Virtual Reading Club. The blog Reading Confetti has such a club. You read a book that is chosen for the month and do an activity that matches the theme. A lot of people will post their activity ideas on their own blog, but if you don't have a blog you can do so on their Facebook page. The books in at least this group are pictures, which is great for families with young readers.

Each book that is part of the theme includes great discussion questions and other ideas and activities!

Family Reading Club. It's a book club. It's just for the family. Not only are you getting some quality time together as a family, but you are also promoting reading and comprehension. Whether you are reading the same book or books by the same author or if you each are reading different books open up a discussion by what you are reading. It doesn't have to be deep discussions, but you all should share what you like about what you are reading and answer other simple questions. Then you should do some fun book related activities!

Book Clubs is yet another fun way to be involved with the books you and your child are reading. The comprehension part of it comes from asking questions. However, the fun activities are extensions of the book and it created an opportunity for the children to connect what they read to something that they are doing themselves. Even if your child doesn't like to talk that's perfectly fine because they'll warm up eventually and participate in the verbal part. They'll at least enjoy the connecting activities!

Year round I get this question every so often. The asking becomes be more prevalent when school is wrapping up and will be out for the summer. Parents will come in and ask:

What can I do to test my child's comprehension of the books he/she reads?

Typically, in the past, my answers always consist of the strong suggestion of having the parent be involved with their child's reading. Read along with them (by using the same book or by checking out a second copy) and ask them questions. If one can't read along, one can still ask questions: What is the story about? What character do you like? and so on.

Now, after being an alligator in a vest (an investigator!) I've come across some more helpful resources for the parents who need assistance in working their young readers.

BOOK ADVENTURE
One of the popular questions is if we have quizzes for the books or if we have access to the AR or Lexile quizzes that their child's school has. Answer: No, we don't. Some books have questions in the back and sometimes there are other resources available at the library that one can use. But actual quizzes that maps the progression of the reader's comprehension? No, not really.

Now, here is my new discovery: Book Adventure. This is a Sylvan Learning Center sponsored reading comprehension quiz program.

The Perks

Free(!) login profils for students (grades K-8), teachers, and parents

Students can created reading lists to take to libraries

Students can take quizzes on the books they read.

Each quiz completed is graded and student can earn points

Points can be redeemed for prizes (such as a three-month free subscription to Highlights magazine as an incentive)

There is a Reading Level system set up that is similar to AR

Teachers/parents can create classroom settings that can keep track of their student/child's progress

Teacher/parents have access to the quizzes with the answers provided

There is a large database of book quizzes that can be on a K - Grade 12 reading level and is searchable and can filtered for interests and the likes.

Many more

I've played around with the site under two test logins (a student and a teacher) and so far the sight is pretty awesome for a free resource. The quizzes are developed by volunteers, but I have the feeling that these are verified questions that were developed by the teachers who participate (I was asked to join as a volunteer when I registered). I will definitely be recommending this to parents in the future.

MORE RESOURCES AND TIPS
There are other resources that can be found other places:

Book Publishers may have quizzes available among their games and activities site for children. HarperCollins, for example, have some.

Workbooks. Some schools will provide copies of their text books for patrons to have reference access to at the public library. Some libraries may also have workbooks in a Parent/Teacher collection. My system has both options and with a little thinking and prepping activities can be set up for working with reading comprehension.

The last tip I can never not provide:

Be Involved!

You, as parent/guardian/caregiver, are an important part of promoting reading for a child. Be involved by sharing the book and reading together.

WP-CC EXTRAS
For those who would like more ideas on Reading Comprehension, check out the list available under related tool bar tab with the same name. There you will find:

If you would like more information about reading as a family check out WP-CC's page about R.A.D. - Reading Aloud Daily. Reading Aloud, individually or as a family, has good benefits for comprehension too!

P.S. ~ FELLOW BLOGGER RECOMMENDATION

A fellow blogger Superbrarian (Observe, Analyze... Blog) also posted on her blog information about the same topic at her library that has quick information. From her post, I learned about two websites: Reading Rockets and Start with Reading that have a wealth of information and resources, such as their Reading Adventure Packets that parents, teachers, and librarians have access too.

Do you have any recommendations for working on reading comprehension with your child(ren)?

Saturday, June 1, 2013

The last storytime for the Spring Season was the first in probably a series of programs that will simply be entitled Miss Dorothy's Favorites. Such a simple theme does not mean it was an easy to plan for. I have too many favorite books!

BOOKSWhere Is the Green Sheep? written by Mem Fox and illus. by Judy Horacek (T)
I ::love:: this books so much! It is my ultimate goal to make a flannel version someday. The children were wonderful in asking the question "But where is the green sheep?" with me.

What Does Bunny See?: A Book of Colors and Flowers written by Linda Sue Park and illus. by Maggie Smith (T)
This is such a lovely book, and my storytime friend Agnes came out to hear the story too. The Toddlers did a great job naming all the colors.

Cows in the Kitchen written by June Crebbin and illus. by Katharine McEwen (T, P)
Fun book + a knowable tune to sing to = one of my favorites! I love it when the families sing along too to make the room full with the silly animal song!

It's A Tiger! written by David LaRochelle and illus. by Jeremy Tankard (P)
The Preschool kids caught on to the pattern of the tiger is hiding on each page, but did love the ending!

Mary Had a Little Lamp written by Jack Lechner and illus. by Bob Staake (P)
I remember this book back when I was an assistant for my local library, and had never forgotten it. The children thought it was so silly!

Pigeon Wants a Puppy! written and illus. by Mo Willems
Oh, Pigeon. All the books are my favorite!

SONGS & RHYMESOpen, Shut Them (T, P)

follow actions

Open, shut them

Open, shut them

Give a little clap

Open, shut them

Open, shut them

Lay them in your lap

Creep them, creep them up to your chin

Open your mouth wide, but don't put your fingers in!

Open, shut them

Open, shut them

Give a big clap

Open, shut them

Open, shut them

Lay them in your lap.

Cows in the Kitchen (T, P)

If you hadn't sung to this book... you must!Touch Your Nose (T, P)

follow actions

Touch your nose

Touch your chin

That's the way this game begins

Touch your eyes

Touch your knees

Now pretend you're going to sneeze!

Aaachooooo!

Touch your hair

Touch one ear

Touch your two red lips right here

Touch your elbow where it bends

And that's the way this touch game ends.

ACTIVITIES

Egg Shakers (T, P)
We ALL love egg shakers!

FLANNEL BOARDSWhere Do I Live? (T, P)
I brought out of my success flannel boards from last year because, well, for one thing they have the star fish and whale pieces at which I squeal in delight whenever I see them. But also, it's just fun to see the kids play with this one.

CRAFTSWhere is the ______ Sheep? Coloring Page (T)
A really simple craft for the toddlers to choose a color (or use all colors) and to create an interactive hiding place for it.

I Had A Little ______ Drawing Page (P)
When it came to planning the craft for the Preschool group I noticed that I ended up with a "pet" under theme. So, I simply created a drawing page for them to use their imagination to create their own pet a lot like Mary who had a lamp for a pet. Mine picked a pie-pan kite that could taken out for a flight or to simply walk along side me.

PICTURES

Where Do I Live? flannel board,Toddler and Preschool Storytime,created by Dorothy WP-CC, 2012

This was a really interesting storytime theme to plan. The only rule that I had to follow was that it had to include photographs instead of illustrations. I tried to find books about taking pictures and cameras that would be good for Toddlers and Preschoolers, but that was not going to happen. The idea of photographs was the perfect replacement and it went over extremely well.

BOOKS

Noisytime for Zoo Animalswritten by Caroline Arnold and photographs for Richard Hewett (T)
We started out with a really easy book with photos of zoo animals. The Toddlers always love making animal noises!The Handiest Things in the World written by Andrew Clements (T)
This was a good book, but the Toddlers were not as interested in pictures of what hands can do.Flamingos written by Cecilia Pinto McCarthy (T, P)
I shared this book with both storytime programs because I love the photos and the colors of flamingos(!). Everyone agreed with me.City Colors written and photographs by Zoran Milich (T)
This is an extremely simple book with one color per page with a different photo of something found in the city that has that color. It worked great for my flannel board activity.

Here a Face, There a Face written and photographs by Arlene Adla (P)
I had a really small Preschool group and so the children were able to sit very close, and we took our time to try hard to find the faces in the photos. It was a lot of fun to see what the children found and did not find compared the librarians that I tested the book on. It was a joy to go through this book. Priceless moment #1.

Step Gently Out written by Helen Frost and photographs by Rick Lieder (P)
This is a new poem picture book that also happens to be on the new 2013 Texas 2x2 Reading List. The photographs are amazing and the poem is simply lovely. This is a great book.

If Rocks Could Sing: A Discovered Alphabet written and photographs by Leslie McGuirk
This was another great book to share with the kids. Just as with Here a Face, There a Face they all loved to study the rocks and decide they truly did look like the alphabet letter.

Sea Stars written by Jody Sullivan
Some of the photos of sea stars (or starfish to some kiddos) are amazing in the book.

SONGS & RHYME

Open, Shut Them (T, P)

follow actions

Open, shut them

Open, shut them

Give a little clap

Open, shut them

Open, shut them

Lay them in your lap

Creep them, creep them up to your chin

Open your mouth wide, but don't put your fingers in!

Open, shut them

Open, shut them

Give a big clap

Open, shut them

Open, shut them

Lay them in your lap.

Old McDonald Had a Farm (T, P)
Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O
And on his farm he had a cow, E-I-E-I-O
With a "moo-moo" here and a "moo-moo" there
Here a "moo" there a "moo"
Everywhere a "moo-moo"
Old MacDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-OContinue with other farm animals:Sheep, Chicken, Pig

Touch Your Nose (T, P)

follow actions

Touch your nose

Touch your chin

That's the way this game begins

Touch your eyes

Touch your knees

Now pretend you're going to sneeze!

Aaachooooo!

Touch your hair

Touch one ear

Touch your two red lips right here

Touch your elbow where it bends

And that's the way this touch game ends.

ACTIVITIES

Egg Shakers (T, P)
Ohhhh, yeah!

FLANNEL BOARDS

City Color Match (T)
Needing a flannel board activity for the little ones I simply made different felt shapes that were in a array of different colors. When I read through the book City Colors the child(ren) with the matching colored flannels had to put their piece(s) on the board. This was a lot of fun.

Old McDonald Had a Farm Photos (T, P)
To have a visual for this song I printed out and laminated photographs of a barn and the different animals we had to sing about.

CRAFTS

Match the Colors Activity Page (T)
I loved this craft. I created an activity sheet page that had the names of different colors that were also printed in the corresponding color (does that make sense? If not, see the picture below!). The toddlers had to match little different photo cutouts. I overheard one mom say to her child that this was a really crafty and smart way of color matching. Big smile!

Foam Picture Frames (P)
What are photos without picture frames. Even in this digital day and age you need picture frames. Using a die cut, I created frame pieces out of fun foam for the children to glue together. They also decorated them with different foam shapes. Point to remember: don't glue one side of the outside frame because that is how you are going to slide your photo in!

PICTURES

"Old McDonald Had a Farm" photo flannel board,
created by Dorothy WP-CC, 2013

About Me

Salutations! I am the owner of The Wielded Pen. Educated in English and Children's Literature, I am an avid reader, an aspiring writer and artist, lover of travel, and, all-in-all, a Super Children's Librarian.